For years, Aquaman has been the butt of many jokes. Despite this, he has been moving up in terms of popularity. Geoff Johns has been working on bringing the character to new heights (or perhaps we should say new depths...below the ocean) and Aquaman isn't the same character he used to be. Since his return before the launch of the "New 52" in the Brightest Day story arc, Aquaman is becoming more than just a character that swims around and 'talks' to the fish.

As is the case with many of the "New 52" titles, there are often some surprising outcomes as we discover what elements of the characters have changed and what remains the same. AQUAMAN #5 is setting the stage for the next story arc but we witnessed several interesting situations. If you haven't already, be sure to read the issue as there will be some spoilers below.

Aquaman in the Middle of the Desert

Where would you expect the typical Aquaman story to take place? Often they occur deep beneath the ocean or at least close to a body of water of some sort. That wasn't the case in this issue. After being beaten down a little and thrown from an aircraft, Aquaman found himself in the middle of a desert. Normally this wouldn't be too big of a deal for a superhero but Aquaman is someone that depends on water. His body needs it.

At least this time in the desert allowed him to do some self reflecting on who he is and where he's going. In other words, he did a little hallucinating which provided some insight into his character.

The "A" Doesn't Stand for "Aquaman"

Since his debut seventy years ago, Aquaman has pretty much always brandish a big "A" on his belt buckle. Coming from royalty, a little bit of arrogance wouldn't be a surprise. Then again, as a superhero, this could be similar to Superman wearing the "S" emblem on his chest. Superheroes usually have a symbol as part of their costumes.

It turns out the "A" actually stands for "Atlantis." This makes perfect sense as the symbol has been seen in other areas. Aquaman might be the hero of the ocean but it wouldn't make sense for his symbol to be everywhere.

Aquaman Has Super-Hearing

Aquaman does more than just swim around. He's always possessed several enhanced abilities. In the first issue of this series, we saw his skin is bullet proof. This is logical as his body needs to be able to withstand the crushing forces of the deep ocean.

Of course he has some super-strength as well. Swimming in those crushing depths would take some effort. He can swim at high speeds and has even been shown able to leap farther than a normal person on land.

Going along with the strength he has had great stamina in order to do all that swimming around. What we haven't really seen before was the idea that he had super-hearing. If you've ever been underwater, you know sound travels a little differently than when you are on land. There's also the effects of the water and the pressure on his eardrums and so forth. We don't know the extend of how powerful his hearing is but perhaps we will see it mentioned more often.

Aquaman Gave Up the Throne for Mera

Aquaman has often been known as the King of Atlantis. Even in JUSTICE LEAGUE when he comes out of the water, he mentions the effects of Darkseid's plan being felt in his city. Aquaman has lost his throne before but it's mentioned here that he actually gave it up for Mera. She comes from a questionable past. We saw a lot recently during BRIGHTEST DAY and now Aquaman has chosen to live on the surface with her in a lighthouse in Amnesty Bay.

If Aquaman gave up the throne and walked (swam) away from Atlantis, who is in charge now?

Someone Sunk Atlantis

Atlantis is the lost civilization that used to be on the surface but somehow ended up at the bottom of the ocean. Whether it was a natural occurrence or the results of a dastardly plan, there haven't been a lot of stories dealing with the city's origins. Through an ancient piece of Atlantean technology, Aquaman is able to view a recorded message. Atlantis was attacked. Their "enemy" was attacked by someone using the ocean against them.

What we have to wonder now is how long ago did this happen? The piece of tech Aquaman examines is supposed to be centuries old. It also contained the recorded message. If Atlantis was attacked and sunk, who was responsible? Is this knowledge that is unknown to the people of today's Atlantis? What does this have to do with the Trench and why was there a shadowy monstrous face outside Aquaman's window during the storm in the middle of the night?

Some of these answers may have been answered before but as with the rest of the DCU in the "New 52," there's a lot that's changing and being rewritten. The fun part is being able to witness it all as it happens for "the first time." With the history of Atlantis now about to be explored, we're bound to be treated to even more revelations about Aquaman.

Aquamn is really one of my best surprise from the new 52, good since it new beginning.

I don't know why but i would love to see the end of atlantis with Vandal savage.

i knew this title was gonna be a big hit from the start. geoff and ivan's work with aquaman during brightest day and blackest night were above fantastic. i high high hopes for this title and there being met and in some instances, even going OVEr my expectations. i look foward to seeing how a big atlantis even will go for this character and im glad aquaman is gonna be a big player in the DC universe :)

(but i still think green lantern is better! haha)

Why do all of Johns' characters have parent issues?

The "A" stands for Atlantis! Woah! Now that is something new we've finally learned :P

And no, this isn't some ironic-type comment. I'm truly surprised on that one! XD

I want the long hair and beard back.

@Avenging-X-Bolt said:

Why do all of Johns' characters have parent issues?

...woah

@Avenging-X-Bolt said:

Why do all of Johns' characters have parent issues?

It's more of a comic book thing I'd say. It's easier to name characters with some unresolved issues with their parents than those that don't

i never really got into Aquaman, but this could turn me into a full fledged fan!

I'm loving this new series, and as such, Aquaman is now a favourite character. Kudos to Johns for making this so.

i hate how everyone hated on him when hes pretty cool

I'm definitely in the group of people who wasn't an Aquafan before this book. I really Loved what was done with him in Blackest Night and Geoff Johns is really good with writing less known characters, he's done this before with Flash and Green Lantern. I'm glad i picked up issue 1 and I'll happily keep reading.

thought aquaman was a dork before. read this series and now i'm hooked.

This has been a super-exciting series. For starters, Ivan Reis is the man. Secondly, Johns is touching on Atlantis itself which is something that hasn't been tackled. The structure of issue five was phenomenal. I am looking forward to find out just who is behind the sinking of Atlantis and hopefully Arthur's return.

The only thing that bugs me is while Aq is one of the best of the New 52, he hasn't gotten any play in the Justice League book aside from five or six total lines of dialogue. With a character that is rising ti legit prominence in the DCU's New 52, Aq needs to be awesome in every book he appears in. I think that's the complaint with a lot of the JL members here at the start. I am totally hopeful every hero will get their time to shine.

@stormtrance1618 said:

thought aquaman was a dork before. read this series and now i'm hooked.

Agreed. I'm also reading Wonder Woman now. The 52 is working for me. I rarely read DC comics except for Batgirl and random stories, so these new versions of the characters are really giving me a way to jump in without Cliffsnotes. I've actually dropped some X-Men titles in order to read them.

I don't get the constant need to continually reference Aquaman's perceived "joke" status in comics journalism, T-dawg? He was ubiquitous in 2011 appearing in the best selling book Brightest Day, Flashpoint, Emperor Aquaman, and his current series is in the Top 10 of DC's New 52 sales. Oh, and AquamanMovie.com is a registered placeholder for Warner Brother's Entertainment as well, fyi.

So let's all move forward and not feel the need to reference past mis-perceptions, OK-- its not 2008 anymore ?

Joe Slab

@Eyz:

My geek moment of the day- It was established in AQUAMAN Vol. 3 that the A stands for Atlantis, Johns is just the only one to remember or reference this bit of continuity in the last 25 years :)

I really approve of the 'A' standing for Atlantis! I could never stand Superman or other heroes having a symbol that's just a letter. That always felt so egotisical to me.

The sinking can't be too long ago if Aquaman can understand the recording.

Wowylied is right, it would be kinda cool if Vandal Savage was responsible.

I can't believe There'd be a day where Aquaman would be one of my most looked forward to titles every month. I am loving this though.

"Aquaman has lost his throne before but it's mentioned here that he actually gave it up for Mera"

Isn't this incorrect? The scan that's posted even has Aquaman saying he didn't do it for her. If anything he gave it up for his dad. To be more like him.

@Pokeysteve: But the question is where did his "father's" talk come from? Is he really talking to his dad or is this all in his head and what he thinks his dad would say? If it's all coming from him, then that doubt of why he actually gave up the throne is there. Maybe he's just trying to convince himself he gave it up for himself.

Aquaman has made a surprising comeback in the New 52. The reboot has given him a new chance to shine and make him a badass compelling character as he rightfully should be.

i dont know if this was covered yet but did anybody notice that when he did his vuuvuuvuuvuuvuuvuu's a lizard came towards him, is there a chance his powers are not just aquatic animal based.

I never thought it would... but Aquaman is quickly turning into one of my favorite books of the new 52

Aquaman is my fave #1 comic, its what i'm most excited for each month. I grew up around the water (I'm a swimmer) so I've always liked Aquaman but I would never admit it in public but now thanks to Johns I'm proud to admit it.

G-Man said: In the first issue of this series, we saw his skin is bullet proof. This is logical as his body needs to be able to withstand the crushing forces of the deep ocean.......I haven't seen the issue but being hit by 1 type of bullet does not make him completely bullet proof. Also it is not by extension logical for him to be bullet proof because he can survive the pressure at great ocean depths.

But can he still talk to fish?

@stormtrance1618 said:

thought aquaman was a dork before. read this series and now i'm hooked.

there are two fish puns here :)

A fantastic issue and article!

Though personally, I don't think Aquaman gave up the throne for Mera, I think he gave it up to be more human (like his dad). I don't think so just because of the panel, but because it seems like something he would do. Since the first issue we saw him struggling with issues of his father & u can tell he had great admiration for him.

• For any real Aquaman fan, the "A" meaning Atlantis is nothing new.
• His super hearing isn't new either, was covered in "American Tidal"(during Infinite Crisis, before "One Year Later"), and "Brightest Day" among other older stories.
• Giving up the throne isn't that big of a deal and I thought we knew this since issue no.1
• Being in the middle of the dessert, that was part of the solicitations and the cover of the book - no shock there either.
• The sinking of Atlantis is the only mystery for this run but it's nothing shocking(again, for an Aquaman fan such as myself) since "Atlantis Chronicles" and "Obsidian Age" covered it.

That being said, I'm a huge fan of Johns run and love this take on the character. The Trench arc was a good appetizer and it looks like with this one-and-done tale there's a lot of stories to look forward to. The humor is dry at times, but John is still introducing the character to new readers while giving longtime fans new material. Great time to be a fan of Aquaman. Looking forward to "The Other League" and "Who Sank Atlantis?" storylines. Hope to see Lorena/Aquagirl again, as she's one of my favorite characters.

@Miss_Garrick said:

I really approve of the 'A' standing for Atlantis! I could never stand Superman or other heroes having a symbol that's just a letter. That always felt so egotisical to me.

The sinking can't be too long ago if Aquaman can understand the recording.

Wowylied is right, it would be kinda cool if Vandal Savage was responsible.

Id have to take a look at it, but I think he said it was pretty far back, that the item was a glyph from before it sunk, and it was in a part of the sea where those monsters were which atlantians never knew about, at least not this generation of them.

also back in a JLA issue where the team travelled back in time to atlantis (circa 2006 issue, the one where we meet the giant indian shaman from super freinds show in the 70's) it was thousands of years back, at the least 2,000, and atlanteans are supposed to be ahead of us by hundreds of years technologically, as well as physically

I like how they went about this one, he's trying to win back the item, but the media portrays him poorly in the end, I like how their openly trying to get AM credibility by attacking his real problem in our world, thats hes just a guy that swims fast and wears dolphins colors

@BlackArmor: I was hoping someone would notice that lol

Loving this series so far. I don't understand how Aquaman can be so good and JLA can be soooooo bad.

i still wished they broke up Aquaman and Mera...

I always liked Aquaman... I kind of believe that the "Super-Friends" cartoon is what turned him into a joke. However over the recent years they tried to give him back the respect he deserves.

For question five I offer these options:

1. It was Arthur that did it, as according to JLA: Obsidian Age.

2. Poseidon from WW passed by and thought it was an annoying feature

I thought the A stood for Awesome.

@circusrock said:

• For any real Aquaman fan, the "A" meaning Atlantis is nothing new.
• His super hearing isn't new either, was covered in "American Tidal"(during Infinite Crisis, before "One Year Later"), and "Brightest Day" among other older stories.
• Giving up the throne isn't that big of a deal and I thought we knew this since issue no.1
• Being in the middle of the dessert, that was part of the solicitations and the cover of the book - no shock there either.
• The sinking of Atlantis is the only mystery for this run but it's nothing shocking(again, for an Aquaman fan such as myself) since "Atlantis Chronicles" and "Obsidian Age" covered it.

That being said, I'm a huge fan of Johns run and love this take on the character. The Trench arc was a good appetizer and it looks like with this one-and-done tale there's a lot of stories to look forward to. The humor is dry at times, but John is still introducing the character to new readers while giving longtime fans new material. Great time to be a fan of Aquaman. Looking forward to "The Other League" and "Who Sank Atlantis?" storylines. Hope to see Lorena/Aquagirl again, as she's one of my favorite characters.

This.

and..

GARTH FOR RULER OF ATLANTIS

Normally this wouldn't be too big of a deal for a superhero but Aquaman is someone that depends on water. His body needs it.

G-Man said: In the first issue of this series, we saw his skin is bullet proof. This is logical as his body needs to be able to withstand the crushing forces of the deep ocean.......I haven't seen the issue but being hit by 1 type of bullet does not make him completely bullet proof. Also it is not by extension logical for him to be bullet proof because he can survive the pressure at great ocean depths.

...I always thought the A stood for Atlantis...just like how Superman's "S" is really the symbol for the House of EL

Interesting.

His skin, isn't bullet proof. The one bullet that did hit him directly made him bleed, his fish scale armor took most of the damage.

I just read Aquaman #1-#5 and I am official hooked on the series GO AQUAMAN

@G-Man: We as the readers know it's probably in his head but from his dialogue it doesn't seem like he's convinced. He wonders if he's hallucinating but still has an honest conversation with his dad. Even if it is all in his head though, is that one scene enough to say "He gave up the throne for Mera"? I don't think so. That one topic could have been it's own article lol aside from that, this was a great read. All of the articles with numbers in them are good I've noticed.

This was another good issue and I've thoroughly enjoyed this series thus far and this issues splash pages were another joy to behold.

I like the angle of having Atlantis be a basis for much of the current issues facing Aquaman. As for the WHO behind who sunk it...my money's on Darkseid but who knows. I'd really have to get to picking this up.

@Jslab425 said:

@Eyz:

My geek moment of the day- It was established in AQUAMAN Vol. 3 that the A stands for Atlantis, Johns is just the only one to remember or reference this bit of continuity in the last 25 years :)

Awesome! :D

Well, Geoff Johns' just that kinda geek anyways, he loves to mention and ties old stuff into continuity~

I'm afraid that a lot of people who thought Aquaman was a "sissy of the sea" is due to how he was used in those piss-poor cartoons back in the '60s and '70s!

One of the first comic books I ever bought was Aquaman in the late '60s... and imagine my HORROR when I saw how he was being handled by Hanna-Barbera on my television.

The comics were well drawn and dealt with issues like global warming and pollution long before it was stylish. This is probably why it got cancelled and I eventually had to wait for Aquaman "back-up" stories (Drawn by a new kid... Mike Grell!).

Even Aqualad was becoming a bit of a badass.

Black Manta killed Arthur's son... so Aquaman hunted him down, and killed him with his bare hands.

All the "restarts" in the world cannot take away those cool memories.

Aquaman never was a weak character.

He just got into the hands of weak writers and artists! (Not to mention editors!)

It's about time, but really why did it take this long? Aquaman SHOULD be a bulletproof brick capable of pretty amazing acrobatics and low end (for DC speedsters anyways) superspeed simply as a function of being able to swim as fast as he's usually clocked (I believe a 1000 knots circa Grant Morrison's Earth 2). He should have either pretty amazing vision (at least at night), or be as blind as a bat, but then have some other underwater appropriate sensory power.

Also, he's effing King Arthur. He should be rocking some pretty impressive gear, even by comic book standards. Whether it's derived from ancient Atlantean magic, advanced Atlantean tech, or some water based mythological items that fell from the "sky" or were granted to him as the rightful king of the seas, Curry should be able to wow even Batman with his wonderful toys.

He should really be a kind of hodgepodge of all the other characters just at a far lesser level. The psychic powers of J'onn, physicality of Superman, acrobatics/mobility of Batman, the speed of Flash, the resources of Wonder Woman, and plot devices like GL. Nowhere to their levels in their specialties, but together in one package?

That and talking to fish...

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lida58RGOM1qfvwkro1_500.jpg

...I always thought the A stood for Atlantis...just like how Superman's "S" is really the symbol for the House of EL

@Miss_Garrick: I remember writing up a proposal for a Justice League movie one that featured Vandal Savage as the enemy who sank Atlantis. It made so much sense at the time. Still does!!!